"Athithi Devo Bhawa (Guest is God)" continues...

At this stage, I got back to David Jones and informed him of the developments. I told him I needed a formal complaint from a victim who would be ready to travel to India to identify the culprits and make statements before the Investigating Officer and the Court. She should be prepared to testify before the Trial Court when the case came up for hearing. He immediately congratulated me for having done great groundwork. But he forewarned me saying it was a tall order to locate the sort of person I required. No victim, to the best of his knowledge, wished to return to India ever. He assured me he would still do his best.

The search for such a victim, ready to go any distance to get justice, ended when the
Anti-Kidnap Unit of the New Scotland Yard found Julie Clyde (name changed) of South Australia. Thirty-year-old architecture student Julie was married to Pension Fund Manager JK Prudy (name changed). She had undergone a most horrific experience in November 2001 during her visit to India. She was prepared to go to any length to bring her tormentors to book. She had her husband to support her in her quest for justice. A written complaint from her dated January 24, 2001 was received by the C.B.I. through the Yard on January 29 and a case on charges of outraging a woman’s
modesty, abduction, wrongful confinement, cheating and extortion registered. Inspector Ajay Bassi was made the Investigating Officer of the case.

Judy’s complaint, in brief, stated that a group of architecture students, including herself, had come on a study tour from the University of Adelaide, Australia to the Bhuj area of Gujarat to see the damage caused by earthquake to the buildings of the region. After three weeks of study tour, students were allowed some free time to travel across India. A group of six out of them went to Rajasthan. They reached Jaipur by bus on November 15, 2001 at 5 in the morning, after visiting Udaipur, Jodhpur and Jaisalmer.

To be continued...